PB Pike and More 5/30/15

[JDTuna]

Wasn't planning on fishing today, but I ended up having a few free hours this afternoon so I decided to give it a shot. I didn't really expect much given the fact that I had a late start and it was already hot and sunny. I headed out to a spot on the Passaic that I wanted to explore only to find a few cars parked and people fishing. So I pulled up Google maps and found another spot and decided to try some new water. As I was walking the bank, I came to a cove and saw some movement. At first, I figured I had just spooked some big carp but a closer look revealed two big pike in about a foot of water. I quickly threw my spinner at them, but they showed no interest. Decided to switch to a plug. I casted towards the one fish, and again, no interest. Then, I threw toward the second fish and as the plug passed its head the pike quickly turned and smashed the lure. As I got the fish to the bank, I saw it was my new personal best pike. I worked quickly to remove the hook and get the fish back in the water. I attempted a quick measurement while the fish was in the water (I wanted to release her as quick as possible), which wasn't easy by myself. The pike was 36-37" and is my personal best to date. Inching closer to the 40" mark! It was really cool to see her smash the lure in less than a foot of water!




After I released her, I was a muddy mess and it was very hot in the waders and long sleeve shirt (to keep off bugs and poison ivy), so I decided to change gears and hit up a stream with some wild browns on the way home. I could see multiple fish just looking in the water, and caught and released two in short order and headed home.